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Research Paper Example

You should be aware by now that linear regression is a very powerful statistical tool. However, one does not fully see its power until one tries it out for oneself. Hence, the last big computer assignment of the course will ask you to find a problem which can be analyzed with regression, collect data, enter the data into the computer and analyze it with SPSS, and finally write a short paper describing what you are doing and what your results mean. This paper should be two to four typed pages.

Below are some examples you could do. However, I encourage you to be creative. Find your own thing if you can.

Sports problems: can one explain a pitcher's ERA on the basis of hits, walks, and strikeouts he has per inning? Can one explain walks on the basis of hits, homeruns, and RBIs?
Life expectancy: Countries around the world have very different life expectancies. How does per capita and population density affect it? Fertility rates are also intriguing. Can they be explained with the same variables?
Politics: What factors determine whether a congressional district votes Republican or Democratic? Possible independent variables are percentage black, percentage urban, average years of education, income, and age.
P.E. ratios: What determines the price-earnings ratios of stocks?
College enrollments: How important is price in explaining the number of students who enroll in various colleges? What other factors matter?
MPG that cars get: Weight should be important in determining miles per gallon, but do engine size and type of transmission matter too?
Prices of anything: What determines the prices of houses? of books? of cars?

For some problems you may have to collect the data yourself. For others you may have to find it in a book. You should try to get at least 30 observations.

The paper should explain what it is that you are doing, where you got your numbers, what you expect to see in the numbers and why, and finally an explanation of what the statistical results tell you.

Once you get tuned in, there are many possibilities of projects. The expected time to complete the project is three to four hours.

(You must hand in your statistical output in addition to your paper.)


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